How do we preserve our fragile Union?

The Mail agrees wholeheartedly with David Cameron about the immense value of our 300-year-old Union with Scotland.

Yes, together we turned a small European island into a mighty power.

Yes, the Union fostered the titans of the Enlightenment in the 18th century, brought huge prosperity to both our nations in the 19th and stood firm against European dictatorships in the 20th.

And, yes, the United Kingdom is "more, much more, than the sum of our parts".

So the Tory leader has our full support when he promises he will do nothing to jeopardise the Union.

Isn't there a strong risk, however, that some of his proposals for unravelling the chaos of devolution would do just that?

As Mr Cameron points out, the future of the Union is looking more fragile today than at any time in our recent history.

In Edinburgh, the Scottish Nationalists promise to deliver independence within 10 years, deliberately stirring up resentment in the rest of the kingdom to further their cause.

South of the border, English taxpayers are understandably infuriated by having to subsidise free services for Scots - lifesaving drugs, care for the elderly and university tuition - which are unavailable in the rest of the kingdom.

Meanwhile, the constitutional outrage persists whereby Scottish MPs can vote on English matters (though not on issues affecting their own constituents), while English MPs have no reciprocal right to a say in Scottish domestic policy.

It's all an appalling shambles, cynically created by Labour ministers in the vain hope that devolution would buy them Scottish Nationalist votes.

But how to put it right, now, there's the big question.

It clearly makes sense to look again at the Barnett formula, under which Scots receive substantially more state aid per head than the English.

But how wise is Mr Cameron to propose that only English MPs should be allowed to vote on English matters?

With our hearts, we understand his point. But with our heads, we can't help asking if this would lead to a stalemate in which a Westminster Government like the present one, dependent on Scottish MPs, finds itself unable to make domestic policy anywhere in the kingdom.

Wouldn't that kill off the Union? All that can be said with certainty is it will take the utmost sensitivity to unpick the mess without jeopardising the great blessing of our partnership.

It's a sure thing, too, that the Scottish Nationalists will go on trying to needle the exasperated English into demanding independence. Those who treasure the Union must not allow themselves to be provoked.

Britons not working

First we were told 800,000 jobs had gone to foreign nationals since Labour came to power.

Then the Government admitted it had made a slight miscalculation. The true figure was a staggering 1.1million.

Wrong again - or, at best, highly economical with the truth.

Figures released by the Statistics Commission show that foreign-born workers, including those who have since taken British citizenship, have snapped up no fewer than 1.4million of the new jobs created - or four out of five of them.

Where does this leave Gordon Brown's promise of "British jobs for British workers"?

Will that ever come true until we tackle the millions of able-bodied Britons on unemployment and incapacity benefits and renegotiate the right of Eastern Europeans to take British jobs?